It Was You
by weasleyisakeeper26
Summary: Rory goes to apologize to Jess for her last visit when the campaign stops in Philly, but is that all she wants? Will go from seeing each other again and what happens from there. Post-series Literati
1. Intro: Safe to Say

**A/N:** Hello and thank you to anyone who is reading this! This is my first Gilmore Girls fanfic and I'm kind of nervous about this! It's going to cover Rory & Jess as she's finishing up the campaign trail and then continue from there, there will probably be some Luke/Lorelai included eventually, but not too much. Here's the first chapter, it's pretty short, more of an introduction and the others will probably be longer. POV right now is Rory but that will vary in different chapters. I have ideas that could take this story pretty far so please review and let me know if you like it or any improvements/ ideas! Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Gilmore Girls or anything affiliated with it, unless you count the DVD's…

**Chapter 1: Safe to Say**

As the bus sped along the highway Rory stared out the window, happy to see some towns names that she was familiar with for the first time in weeks. Traveling had been exciting, but almost a year of living in and out of hotel rooms had taken its toll. She was relieved that the campaign was just a few weeks away from the end, with a few more stops in the northeast on the way to their final week in Washington DC.

She should have been online researching more job opportunities for when this was all really over, but she was too wrapped up in her own thoughts and the blank pro/con list sitting in a notebook on her lap. She saw a sign ahead: "Philadelphia 50 miles." She had about an hour to decide. Her last departure from that city more than 2 years before replayed in her mind. He had always been the one to do the hurting, but that time, it had been her. She had crushed him. She could still see still see the way it had been reflected his eyes as she walked out, in the way his shoulders slumped for the first time since he had seen her.

She wanted to explain, to tell him that she never meant to hurt him. That she had thought she loved Logan but realized much later that she had really been wrong. Yes she had gone back to Yale but she wasn't truly herself, it had taken a little while but eventually she had rediscovered herself again. This, she knew, was safe to say. It was an honest apology and she hoped he could understand. But there was something else she wanted to tell him, and it definitely wasn't safe.

She wanted to tell him why she couldn't go through with their kiss, with really cheating. To confess that when he kissed her, she was taken aback by the feelings that had so easily come over her. A night of revenge was all she sought after, but when they kissed, she felt safe and excited. But more importantly, she had felt the hope in his lips. She knew if they had gone any farther it only would've led to confusion for all and hurt for someone, so she left.

"Philadelphia 30 miles." She was rapidly running out of time and distance. Anxiously she picked up her pen and looked down at the chart, its perfectly straight line down the center mocking her as it was surrounded by white. She closed her eyes and desperately tried to think of a con, a reason not to go, but there was only one standing out. The possibility of saying too much, revealing what she had thought about in her time on the road. At the same time, one pro seemed to rise out of all of her thoughts to onto the page, that she would finally be able to live with herself knowing that she had tried to fix it. To mend their relationship, if it could even be called that anymore, back into some kind of friendship, a mutual respect and civility to each other. The other pro's were screaming in her head but she chose to ignore them, she was just being emotional, there was no other reason for them. In what must have been the shortest pro/con list Rory Gilmore ever made, she realized that this was something she had to do.


	2. Blank Faces

**A/N:** Thanks to anyone who read the first chapter! I wrote the first 2 at the same time so I figured why wait to post this chapter? They actually interact in this chapter, don't worry! Reviews would be great, I would love to hear any opinions on the story so far!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Gilmore Girls, my name isn't Amy Sherman-Palladino.

**Chapter 2: Blank Faces**

Not too long after the realization had hit her Rory was bringing her luggage into the Philadelphia hotel that she would be staying in for the next 3 days and 2 nights. Despite her nerves, she was feeling immensely relieved that she had this first night off, too much time and she may have changed her mind. Once settled in, she proceeded to spend almost an hour looking for an outfit. After rummaging through all of her bags she had settled on her favorite dark jeans, simple grey flats, and a silky purple tank top. Glancing at the clock she ran her straightener through her hair and applied just a small amount of lip gloss and eye makeup. She knew he would prefer her to look natural and it worried her that she cared.

By the time she got down to the lobby it was almost 7pm and hurried to get a cab as the heat of July sweltered around her. It was only 15 minutes later that she found herself standing in front of the same door she had used to escape the last time she was there. She took a deep breath to steady her shaking hand as it hesitantly reached for the doorknob. Trying to be as quiet as possible, she gently pushed open the door and stepped inside, relieved to see customers milling around and a face behind the register that wasn't his.

She pretended to look at the titles on a shelf that gave her a good view of most of the store, but also allowed for some cover if needed. As she casually flipped through a book who's words she couldn't even see, she rehearsed what she would say to him, making sure to stick only to the safe part, the part that contained only an apology and no mention of any emotions. Halfway through her 2nd mental recitation, she spotted him coming out of what she assumed to be a stock room, as he was carrying a book to a very happy-looking customer. With the shelf as a barrier, she remained hidden until he was done and then approached him, trying hard not to look as scared as she inexplicably felt.

As he turned at the sound of his name, spoken softly by her, she took the sight of him in. His hair was long, like it had been the last time she had seen him; a thin layer of stubble coated his face and he wore jeans with simple blue button down shirt, open at the top so a black T-shirt showed through. Despite her own internal protests, she found herself thinking he looked good. Very good. Sexy good.

It had only taken her a moment to observe all of this and he was now facing her, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Hi," she felt dumb already, 2 years and that was all she could come up with?

"Hi," his response made her feel a little better, a least they were on the same page.

"It's good to see you Jess," she finally said, "how have you been?

She was nervous now; his face had remained blank with a little shock from the sudden sight of her.

"Basically the same since, yeah, working here, writing, promoting my book and the others from Truncheon." He sounded distant, like he was speaking to a stranger or an old acquaintance.

Quickly, she tried to make the conversation friendly:"That's great, that you're writing more. I've been hoping you'd publish another book, I still read—"

He cut her off before she rave about _The Subsect_. "What are you doing here?"

"What?" She was hurt and didn't know what to say.

"Why did you come here?" Her mind flashed back to him saying those exact words through a bus window so many years before. She thought for a minute before answering, and as she looked at him she saw something flash in his eyes, he was remembering too.

"I wanted to see how you were, really. I think this was the longest I'd ever not seen or talked to you at some point."

"Rory," she felt something she hadn't in a long time when said her name, but ignored it as he continued: "The wedding is in what, 6 months? You had to have realized I'd be there for Luke. You would've seen me then or at some holiday at some point. Why did you come here today?"

"Well I've been working for-" she began to explain her job when he interrupted again.

"I'm guessing the campaign is in Philly but it's not in this room so why come?"

She stepped back at the accusatory tone in his voice, and figured Luke must have told him what she was doing since graduating. Then she wondered if he ever asked about her, sought out information on what her. Suddenly she realized he was still waiting for an answer.

"I had to apologize," she heard herself say, "I couldn't let things stay the way they were any longer, I couldn't let that be the way you still thought of me."

"Well thanks, but I'm fine with it." Rory wondered if he had heard the ice in his own voice as he ran his hand through his hair and paused before continuing. "Look, Rory I appreciate it but this wasn't necessary okay? And I'm sure blondie whoever wouldn't want you here right now so let me get you a cab."

At first she didn't respond, surprised by what he had said, and relived that he sounded less harsh.

"Jess I'm not with him anymore. Didn't Luke ever mention that?" He shook his head,

"Luke…he doesn't bring you up much when he calls to check in with me. I only knew about the campaign because he told me he got back with your mom at your going away party."

She didn't know what to make of that, if her being excluded from their conversation was Luke's doing or Jess's. She was about to say something when, quietly, he spoke again.

"So what happened? I thought you were in love with him." He was trying to sound nonchalant but she heard the bitterness in his voice when he said love. It sounded like he hadn't said that word in a very long time.

"He proposed, I said no. He wanted either marriage or nothing and I chose nothing. It ended and I've been on the campaign basically ever since," she explained simply.

"Oh," he said softly, "well I hope you're happy." He sounded genuine, but somehow sad at the same time and she tried to ignore the pain in her stomach that this caused. Choosing not to respond to his statement, she decided to be bold.

"I really would like to catch up, if you do, so would you want to maybe go get some coffee?" Jess just looked at her for a moment, his expression had changed but she couldn't tell what he was feeling, he was good at masking things when he wanted to. Then, for a split second, Rory swore she saw fear in his eyes, not nerves, but true fear. But in an instant it had passed and he slowly let out a breath and nodded.

"Okay, I know a place." She silently followed him out the door, confused not just about what he was thinking, but what she was too.


	3. Cafe Conversations

**A/N: **Thanks to anyone who'd reading this and my first reviewers! I really appreciate it. Like I said in the first chapter, I have plans in my head to let this story go pretty far if people are reading it, so let me know what you think so far in the reviews! Thought I'd change it up so this is Jess's POV.

**Disclaimer: **I still only own the DVD's of the show, and not even all of them at that…

**Chapter 3: Café Conversations**

As they stepped out into the summer hear Jess pushed his sleeves up and tried his hardest not to look Rory in the eyes. He had done his best to hide what he was feeling throughout their entire conversation inside, especially since he didn't even know what he was feeling. He had spent 2 years trying not to think about her, to stop replaying that night in his head over and over, but sometimes he still saw her walking out the door when he closed his eyes at night. He really didn't think he'd have to face her again until Luke and Lorelai's wedding, and he had already been dreading that, but then hear she was, standing in front of him 6 months sooner than he had expected.

He didn't know why he had agreed to go get coffee with her, there were a million thought going through his head and he didn't how long he'd be able to keep it together before exploding. Then he made the mistake of giving her a sideways glance and saw her smile tentatively at him, her eyes sparkling even in the lowlight of streetlamps. That's when he realized they had been walking for 5 minutes in silence.

"This place has good coffee but not my absolute favorite. That's a little too far from here for right now though." She smiled brightly at him, he wanted to turn around and lock himself in his apartment until she was gone.

"That's fine with me, I haven't had nearly enough coffee yet today so anything would do. Do you come here a lot?" Why was she doing this? What made her think that he could be friends with her, like this?

"I guess. It's really close by so if I don't have much time it's the best place to go." She nodded in understanding, he didn't know what else to say. Now that they were walking side by side he tried to casually look at her, something he had been avoiding when they were inside, when she could see him to clearly. She looked amazing; he hated himself for thinking it. Her jeans hugged her in all the right places and her tank top was loose but more revealing than anything she had ever worn back in high school, she was grown up. He wondered if she could tell that he was evaluating her right now, and that she had passed with flying colors, that he wanted to close his eyes and not have to take her in anymore.

"I like this neighborhood," she said, "it's got a nice feel to it, like it's not as busy as the rest of the city. A nice change of pace to come home to." He hated her for liking the same things about this neighborhood that he did, how dare she show just how similar they really were, make him remember why he had loved her in the first place.

"Yeah," he said quietly, "me too." She looked at him quizzically, he could tell she had been trying to figure him out all night, was wondering what he was thinking, but he was doing his best to stop her from seeing that, there was a lot going on in his head that she should've have to know. Then he cursed himself for still trying to protect her.

Finally they arrived at the café, he found a table near the window and sat down, as she settled herself across from him. They each ordered coffee and she looked around, taking in the atmosphere while rambling on about how many coffee shops she'd been to in her travels and how they all were so different. When their coffee came she quickly drank from hers and smiled appreciatively.

"This is good. Great choice Jess." He felt his heart jump for a moment as she said his name for the 3rd time that night. Then she started asking him about what he had been reading lately, any recommendations he had, what books were inspiring his latest writing. He knew what she was doing, books were always a great subject for them; they could talk about them for hours. Before they had first started dating it was how he got her to talk to him over and over again, and once they were together they enjoyed spending days sitting together on the bridge or in the diner, arguing and talking between kisses. He knew what she was doing but he responded anyway, if he had to sit here and talk to her he could at least have a good conversation to distract himself from everything he was trying not to feel.

Inevitably the discussion about books had led to what they had been doing when reading those books, and eventually they were just filling each other in on their lives. Jess didn't realize they had been catching up for over 2 hours until he finally glanced at his phone. He had completely lost track of the time, sitting across from her, watching as her eyes shone when she talked excitedly about some things and then bit her lip and slowed down when complaining about others. He had lost track of how many times he saw her smile grow wider when he himself smiled or laughed. The time shook him back into reality and he realized he should end the night before he caused himself too much damage.

"It's getting kind of late Rory, we should probably head out." She looked around when he said that and seemed to realize how long they had been sitting there.

"Oh wow you're right, I didn't realize were the last people in here!" She laughed and started to collect her things, and he found himself wishing he hadn't told her how late it was, that he had let their conversation continue further into the night. They started to walk back towards Truncheon when she mentioned where her hotel was.

"That's not too far and I'd hate for you to have to flag down a cab right now, I can give you a ride over if you want," he made his offer slowly, avoiding letting any hope trickle into his voice. He thought why am I doing this to myself?

She nodded immediately, "sure that would be great, thanks." He led the way to his car and started to drive away as she asked him about the place he had mentioned as being his favorite coffee in Philly. Once again talking came too easily and she didn't even notice when he pulled into the street next to her hotel.

As he parked she turned to him, "I only have to work until 1 tomorrow, I think maybe I'll try that café you like afterwards, see if I agree with you."

She said it as normally as possible, and he didn't know how to respond for a minute. The feelings for her he had been spending years trying to suppress had been fighting their way back to the front if his mind all night, and he knew that for his own health he should just say goodbye and drive away, but he couldn't do it. But hey, he was already going to be messed up from this night, how much worse could one more day be?

"I don't have to be in the store at all tomorrow, I could go with you if you want. Save you the cab fare, make some pastry recommendations," he didn't look at her as he said it, but turned hesitantly toward her when he had finished.

With a huge smile on her face she answered, "that sounds great, yes definitely, why don't you just meet me here around 1:30?" He nodded his agreement and watched as she hesitated before opening the door to get out.

"Bye Jess, I'll see you tomorrow," she suddenly leaned across the seat to give him a quick hug, and then opened her door to get out. It took him a few seconds to respond, he had tried so hard to be guarded all night and was already preparing himself for the next day, but feeling her arms around him, even for those few seconds, had made his walls crumble down.

"See you Ror," she gave him a last wave as she walked towards the door, and he wondered what the chances were that he'd be able to sleep that night.


	4. Mixed Feelings

**A/N:** I've had a lot of time to write recently so I just posted everything, I hope can keep updating so frequently! Thanks again for reviews and for reading in general, it encourages me to keep going. Here we have some classic Rory/Jess angst, and the title of the story slipped in there (but if everything goes according to plan it will pop up again) and a bit of a cliffhanger. Let me know what you think in the reviews!

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Gilmore Girls, all of this would have actually happened.

**Chapter 4: **Mixed Feelings

The next day seemed like it was moving in slow motion for Rory as she sat taking notes during the Senator's speech. She anxiously tapped her pen against the paper as she tried hard to focus, but couldn't think about anything besides the previous night and what was to come in a few hours.

Her visit hadn't exactly gone as planned. She had expected to apologize, that he would forgive her, maybe they would spend some time catching up, and then she wouldn't have to worry about it being awkward when they saw each other while visiting Stars Hollow. What had actually happened though, was she finally realized that she must have hurt him even more than she thought. She could tell that he had not happy to see her, and it was only after they began talking at the café that he finally seemed less guarded and was able to look her in the eyes. She couldn't help but wonder what he had been hiding when he was avoiding her.

But she was even more concerned about her own feelings. The way she felt when she finally saw him shocked her, as did how awful she had felt when he slipped and let some of his pain show. The scariest thing so far had been the way her heart sped up when he offered to join her again today. Then she had hugged him. That was a mistake. The moment she felt him place a hand lightly on her back to gently return the hug, she felt an incredibly strong urge to turn her head and kiss him. It would have been so easy, and the thought made her instantly happy, but she didn't know if he felt the same way, and honestly she was freaking herself out. Today though, she would try to figure out what he was thinking, so she could decide whether to face her own feelings or just try to ignore them, the same way she had on her last visit.

Finally, the speech ended and she was headed back to her hotel, wondering where this day with Jess would take her. By the time she changed it was 1:30 and she headed downstairs to wait for him. She was surprised to see him already there, leaning against the side of his car waiting for her. Walking over, Rory couldn't help but smile and notice

the way her heart had started beating faster the way in a way that should have worried her again, but she realized that all of her doubts had slipped away.

* * *

><p>It wasn't until almost midnight that Jess pulled up to Rory's hotel again. Their visit to the coffee shop had led to an actual meal at a nearby restaurant, and which had led to a trip to a bookstore, after which they were ready for dinner, and after Jess paid the bill before she could even object, she insisted on getting him more coffee and dessert. He had never thought the day would last so long, but when they were talking and laughing and browsing through books neither noticed the time. All day he had felt the hope growing in his chest, that maybe this reunion would be the one to not end in heartbreak.<p>

He couldn't find a place to pull in front of the hotel so he offered to walk her to the door, it was late after all. As they got out of the car, she smiled brilliantly at him as she closed the door and stepped towards him.

"I had a great day Jess, thank you for showing me around and everything, really thank you." He didn't know what to say. What he wanted to say was, I'll take you wherever you want, just stay with me, but somehow, inexplicably, he heard himself ask her a question.

"Why did you say no?" She looked confused.

"What? You mean to that book? Jess I told you I've already-" He didn't want to say what he meant but he did anyway.

"No not about the book, to Logan. Why did you say no to him?" Now she just seemed shocked.

"Why are you asking me this?"

"Why do you think Rory? The last time you were here you ran out on me because apparently you loved him, and now here you are, to apologize for all of it, after turning him down," the anger he had bottled up for 2 years was pouring out of him now, laced into every word he yelled at her. All of the hope that he had been accumulating that day had quickly changed to fear and he expressed it the only way he knew how.

"Because I was wrong Jess! I thought I loved him but I still wasn't back to myself yet. It took me some time but by then I was back to thinking completely straight and I realized that even if I did love him, it wasn't enough to spend the rest of my life with him. Jess, that night when I said that, I couldn't go through with it because-" but again he had interrupted her.

"I don't wanna hear about that night. You have no idea what that did to me." Her eyes filled with tears and he almost regretted his bitter words.

"Jess you have to know, just let me finish. That night, I had just wanted revenge, but when you kissed me I knew I had come to the wrong place. When we kissed, I felt safer than I had in months, I knew that if I let it go on any longer, I wouldn't be able to leave, and it scared me. It would've turned my entire world upside down and I couldn't do it."

"Why not?' he bellowed at her, "why couldn't you take a chance with me, I've done it for you, so many times." His voice cracked at the end, and when it did her expression immediately changed to one of sadness. Her answer was almost a whisper.

"I did once, remember? We were together for a few blissful months and you left me. Since then I've realized, if you couldn't stay for me then, when we were living blocks from each other, seeing each other every day, happy, how could I ever trust you as an adult? When things might actually get hard?" He wondered how he ever could of thought she'd forgiven him for his teenage mistake.

"Yes Rory, I hurt you then, and for that I will always be sorry, but I haven't been the only one to mess up. You have to take some responsibility for some things. When I showed up to Yale and begged you to be with me, it was you who did the rejecting. When I brought you the book I had written, because you told me I could do more, it was you who was dating someone else. And when you showed up to where I work, and we kissed, it was you who left. You did the hurting and now I'm supposed to stand here and let you tell me that it's all my fault?" He stopped, his breathing heavy, he usually didn't yell like this, or even say so much at once, but it was something he had to say. When she responded, the tears had fallen and were running slowly down her face.

"I'm sorry Jess, I'm so so sorry. For everything. I shouldn't have come here it wasn't fair to you. If you don't want me to a part of your life again I understand, I just had to try-" this time when he interrupted her, it wasn't with words.

His lips crashed against hers as he took 2 big steps to cross the space between them. His hands were on her lower back pulling him closer to her as he felt her hands become tangled in his hair. He tried to pour all of the feelings he had for her, good and bad, out through the passion in the kiss. He didn't want it to stop but he had to make sure she wasn't about to run away again, he didn't know if he'd be able to pick himself up again after that. He hesitantly pulled his mouth from hers and tried to speak.

"Ror," he started, but she just shook her head at him and then pulled his mouth back to hers. He didn't know what else to do, so he just pulled her even tighter to his body, reveling in the feeling of her eagerness and returned passion.


	5. Better

**A/N: **Here we have what happens after that kiss, I hope everyone likes! I know I've been updating rediculously quickly but thats because I basically wrote this all at once and just split it into chapters so you wouldnt have to read a novel! I'll try to stay pretty consistent but this weekend I just got everything out. Anyway, reviews are always amazing, I like to hear your opinions and I'm always open to suggestions.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own any part of Gilmores, except for Seasons 1-3 on DVD, which I use to drool over Milo Ventimiglia.

**Chapter 5: **Better

As much as she may have tried to deny it when she was with Logan, Rory had always known Jess was the best kisser of all the guys she had dated, and that definitely hadn't changed. As he let his hand slide down her back to rest on her waist and deepened their kiss she thought if anything, he had gotten even better. She could barely stand, her hands grasped his hair and she moved closer to him for balance as she became overwhelmed with how his lips felt on hers, how his tongue tasted as it danced around her mouth. She didn't know what she was doing but she knew she didn't want to stop so she slowly pulled back, gasping as he tugged on her lip with teeth.

"What's wrong?" he asked breathlessly, she swore when he looked into her eyes like that he could see into her soul.

"Do you want to go inside?" She saw the relief wash over his face when she asked him, and didn't remove her body from his. He just nodded and started walking with her towards the door, letting his arm stay wrapped around her waist. She led them to the elevator as quickly as possible and the doors had barely shut when she felt her back pressed against the wall as he began kissing her again.

Moments later they were stumbling their way through the hallway, she trying to navigate them to her room unsuccessfully. She pulled away for a second to see which direction they needed to go and he started trailing kisses down her neck, she lost her breath and dragged him towards her room, fumbling for her key in the process. Finally they reached her door, she reached behind herself and opened, it almost stumbling at the motion before Jess tightened his grip on her and pulled her back to her feet.

She pushed his open button-down shirt off of him as they walked into the room, using her other hand to clutch at his T-shirt in an effort to bring him as close as possible. By now his hands slipped under her shirt and ran up and down her back, every place he touched felt like it was on fire but she found herself shivering. Rory wasn't sure if this was a good idea, he had clearly been angry with her but when he kissed her everything felt right, as if it was what she'd been waiting for all along. And from the way he kissed her, with so much passion and care she knew his anger had faded away, at least for the moment.

For the second time since she was in Philadelphia, she decided to be bold. Abandoning any doubts she had about her own feelings she pulled him towards the bed, slowly laying down as he brought himself on top of her. She felt his lips leave hers and she opened her eyes to see him looking at her, with something she had never seen in his eyes before, she couldn't tell if it was just desire or hope, but it was beautiful and she wanted to see it all the time. But then he hesitated; he seemed to notice their position and made to move off of her.

Was he serious? I'm 24 years old she thought to herself; you don't have to stop yourself anymore. Slowly she breathed his name, bringing her hands up under his shirt to feel the muscles on his back, holding his body up above her. The sound of his name seemed to be all he needed to hear and he continued their kiss, drawing it out to be even more intense. Suddenly she had a feeling that kissing wouldn't be the only thing he would be better at than the others.

Later they lied next to each other under the covers in the hotel bed, trying to catch their breath. Rory turned to look at him, thinking how that had been better that she ever could have imagined and wondering if he felt the same way. From the look on his face he was very happy about something, but also seemed a little nervous. She moved a little closer to him and he put his arm underneath her, letting her rest her head on his shoulder. She looked up at him and smiled.

"Hi," she repeated the same dumb word she had the night before, laughing.

"Hi," he replied, and gently kissed her hair, "what time do you have to leave tomorrow?"

"2," she answered, "but at least it's a travel day instead of working."

"I should probably head back then," he said, she heard some sadness in his voice, "let you get some sleep." She looked at him again, he had been staring at her, she could tell from the way he quickly looked away.

"Or you could stay," she said, hoping he would want to, "it's really late and then we could, hang out in the morning." He gave her a signature smirk.

"Hang out, so that's what they're calling it these days." She playfully slapped his arm in response and he just continued to smirk at her.

"Yeah, I can stay." She moved closer to him, letting her head stay on his shoulder while her hand came to rest on his chest. She felt his other arm wrap around her in response, and his head turned to rest above hers.

She was drifting off to sleep before she knew it, more comfortable than she had ever been, when she heard him whisper something, so low she knew it wasn't meant for her to hear.

"You're so damn beautiful." With that she felt his lips press to her hair again, and she fell into a peaceful sleep.


	6. Two Syllables

**A/N: **Thank you for all the reviews! Keep them coming please! And thanks for reading of course.

**Chapter 6: **Two Syllables

The next morning Rory woke up smiling but it faltered when she realized there were no longer any arms wrapped around her. She sat up and looked around her, he wasn't in the bed and the bathroom door was open with no sign of him. Immediately she panicked, he must've left, he never wanted to stay. What did I do? She felt her heart sink deep into her chest, until she noticed a small piece of paper on the nightstand next to her. Quickly she unfolded it and immediately felt silly for overreacting, but immensely relieved at the same time. She looked at the handwriting, always recognizable to her as it was found in the margins of so many of her books, and smiled at the message:

_Went to get breakfast- and coffee. _

_Be back soon. _

_-Jess_

She wondered how long ago he had left and figured he should be back any minute. Quickly she ran her fingers through her hair to try to and look a little more presentable, and wiped under her eyes with her fingers trying to remove any make-up smudges that could have occurred. Then she realized she was still naked from the night before, and ran to her bag where she decided to thrown on some, pretty small, shorts and a tank top that she often slept in when it was warm. She was just slipping back under the covers when the doorknob turned and Jess silently came in.

She sat up a little so he would know she was awake.

"Hey," he walked towards her and sat on the edge of the bed, handing her the larger of the 2 coffees he carried. She eagerly grabbed the cup and took a big gulp before she responded.

"Hi, thank you this is great." He opened a brown paper bag and held out to her.

"Bagel?" She took one out of the bag and began to wonder if he would ever mention last night or if they were just supposed to pretend that he had shown up to her room in the morning to bring the breakfast. She couldn't let herself walk away with no resolution, not again. This trip was supposed to make things easier between them and even though she wouldn't trade their night together for anything, she didn't know how he felt about it, and if he'd remember how mad he had been at her.

"Jess, can we talk?" She was nervous and hoped he couldn't tell, she had no idea where this was going to go.

"Okay, what about?" He looked nervous and she figured he already knew what it was about but she decided to answer anyway.

"What happened last night, what's been happening the past 2 days, us." Taking a deep breath she waited for him to respond. Suddenly fascinated by the bedspread, he stared down at it, pulling at a loose thread.

"Well, what did you think about it?" He was going to make her speak her feelings first, she didn't know what to do. There were 2 options here, tell him the truth, that all of her old feelings for him were coming back and she was scared as hell, or lie, and say it was a one time thing and she hoped they could be friends now.

Looking straight at him, she studied his face. At the moment it was slightly crinkled with worry, but she couldn't help noticing how good he looked, how much he had matured. Her mind began to drift to the night before: the way he had looked at her, how deliriously happy she had been, the way it felt to fall asleep with his arms around her, and how he had whispered to her, when he thought she was already asleep.

Jess sat silent on the edge of the hotel bed, mindlessly twisting a loose string through his fingers as he waited for Rory to respond. As the seconds that to him felt like hours passed, he grew more worried. Taking this long to decide how she felt about him, about them, couldn't be a good sign. Then he snuck a glance in her direction and saw that even though she seemed lost in thought, there was a small smile on her face. At that moment, it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

Finally, she spoke, "I think it was amazing, all of it. I think that I could still spend hours talking to you without even realizing; I think that last night was unbelievable, and I think that, I know that, I have feelings for you. But I'm also scared Jess, that fight yesterday, what you said, you were right. We've both hurt each other, a lot, and I don't want to have to go through that again. I don't want you to have to either."

"Okay," he finally looked up and stared straight into the beautiful eyes that he had missed so much. He realized he had almost forgotten the exact shade of blue that they were when she was looking at him. Right now she was looking at him like he was crazy.

"Okay?" God he had missed that, how her voice changed when she was confused and trying to find the answer. How had he forgotten that too?

"Okay," he repeated, but adding a smirk this time.

"So okay? That's it were not going to take any risks and were just going to leave it?" She sounded completely shocked, and he was glad.

"That's not what I said-" and before he could finish explaining she cut him off, fuming.

"No Jess, it's not, because you didn't say anything. I'm trying to have a serious conversation with you and you respond with one word. Shouldn't writers have vocabularies a little larger than that? Jeez is your next book gonna have one word per chapter? 'Okay' by Jess Mariano I see a bestseller coming! See what I'm doing? I'm talking that's what you-" he had even missed the way she rambled but he stopped her anyway.

"Rory!" he had to yell to get her attention again.

"What?"

"First of all that shouldn't even count as talking because you had no idea what you were saying, that was a rant. And second, when I said okay, I meant okay, let's not hurt each other. I can honestly tell you, I don't plan on hurting you again, ever." He emphasized the last word; she had to know the depth of his feelings for her.

"And how exactly would that work? Magically not let anything bad happen? Suddenly become incapable of inflicting pain on each other?" For the first time he actually heard the fear in her voice and hated himself for being its cause.

"We would be together, that's how. And I never said nothing bad was going to happen, I cant control that, I'm sure at some point something bad will happen to one or both of us, but the difference is I can handle the bad things now. You have to believe me, trust me, Rory. I grew up. I don't have to run away anymore. Unless you think it's your turn again, I don't see a problem."

Desperately hoping this speech had made up for his previous okays, he looked back at her to see her reaction. Tears had filled her eyes and he hung his head in defeat. Another rejection. This one would be the worst of all. He had turned to leave and stopped when he heard her speak again.

"It's not my turn." His head snapped up to face her.

"What?"

"I'm not going to hurt you again either, I just…I feel…it's scary," she smiled slightly at her own hesitations, "coming back here and being hit with all of these feelings and having so much happen, I wasn't prepared for any of it, even though I should have been."

"Well if it makes you feel any better I wasn't prepared for you to be at my door again either," he smiled and moved a little closer to her.

"So, we would be together huh? And you're sure that's what you want? To, try us again? As grown-up Rory and Jess?" she sounded so sweet when she said he felt his hear melt.

"If its what you want, yeah. Although I think you've always been a grown-up Rory," he gently touched her cheek as he said this and felt her smile into it.

"And," he continued, "you have to admit, the timing is really, really good. You're about to finish the campaign, and you said you've mostly applied to jobs in New York, Boston, and Hartford right?" She nodded into his hand as he finished, "well, then I think time is finally on our side." She looked up at him with her eyes shining brighter than he had ever seen them, the effects of tears having just been wiped away, and something else, but he didn't know what.

"Okay," she said, taking his other hand into her own.

"Okay?"

"Okay." She smiled as she said it this time, and he pulled her close to him, kissing the side of her head.

_Okay._ The two most beautiful syllables he had ever heard.


	7. Departures

**A/N:** This is kind of a filler chapter, there were just certain things I wanted to have said and next thing I knew it was chapter length. But hopefully you'll still like it and I will post the next chapter ASAP. Like always, please review! Hope everyone is enjoying so far!

**Chapter 7: **Departures

Before she knew it, it was time for Rory to head back to the press bus for her last 2 weeks of travelling. Her morning with Jess was perfect, they ordered food, talked, and were finally able to act the way they both had always wanted to, like a couple. At 1 she began packing up her suitcase again, dreading having to leave the hotel. She looked at Jess and saw he was sadly staring at her suitcase.

"I'll miss you," she barely heard him; he had said it so quietly.

"I'll miss you too, but I'll see you in Stars Hollow in 2 weeks right?" They had decided that morning that he would meet her there when she returned. She planned on staying for at least a week, but it could be longer if she didn't hear back from any of the jobs she had applied to.

"Yes, I'll get there 2 days after you so you have time to tell your mom and Luke what's going on," he smirked at her. They had fought over who would do this and she lost, he claimed that Luke and Lorelai both liked her better so she should be the one to tell them. She had only finally agreed when he bribed her with being able to see what he was working on writing before anyone else.

"Yeah, that will be…interesting. And you're sure you don't think I should casually mention that I ran into you while I was here? Maybe get the idea put in their head first?" She knew her mom wouldn't be upset about her and Jess, Rory had told her everything that happened with them, his visit to her grandparents' house, and the night at Truncheon. But she would be surprised, shocked even. She knew Rory hadn't spoken to him since that night, and she couldn't imagine what her reaction would be to the fact that they were now dating.

"I'm sure, I think it would be better if you just explain everything in person. And don't forget what else you said you would do for me." She rolled her eyes at the ridiculous thing he had asked of her.

"Right, I will find at least 1 closing down bookstore in DC and send you a picture so that you can show Matt and Chris, even though I don't understand why it's necessary." He had asked her to do that this morning, and she was still confused by it.

"I told you Ror, we want to open another Truncheon, and we can't decide where. Matt wants DC but I think it's an awful idea, Boston or New York would be much better." When he had mentioned opening another store and publishing house earlier Rory had been thrilled. He said it so casually like it didn't matter she had thought she misheard him. But her excited squeals and congratulations had finally encouraged him enough to smile and admit that he thought it was pretty cool too.

"And I told you, you might not even be the one who goes to the new store, if Matt wants it there so bad he can go open it," she just wanted the new store to open soon, she was so impressed that he, the last person to start working there, had came up with the idea and logistics to expand Truncheon into another city.

"I know you're happy for me, but trust me, there are other options that are better," she finally gave in; he knew what he was doing.

"Okay fine, then I'll send you the picture and tell my mom and Luke. Whatever you're writing better be really good for all of this!" She laughed as she said it though, because she knew it would be brilliant, he was the one writing it. Suddenly he pulled her in for a kiss, that was much more intense than she had expected. When he pulled away she was breathless.

"What was that for?" He smirked at her again, she had actually missed that.

"Because I can, because I'll miss you and I like how excited you are about Truncheon," he said the last part quickly, as if he was embarrassed. She just smiled at him.

"I'm excited about anything you're doing Jess, you've done so well yourself, its incredible." He looked down as she said it, was he blushing? When he looked back up the slight trace of red was gone his from face.

"So, we should probably get your stuff downstairs huh?" She nodded slowly in response.

"We're gonna talk right? And email and stuff?" She asked him this suddenly and he seemed surprised.

"Rory, we're dating remember? Of course we will. And I have a cell phone these days so that should make everything much easier," he smiled and held her hand in his own.

"I know, I just wanted to make sure, sorry," he squeezed her hand in response and pulled her closer. She tried to burn this exact feeling into her memory, the way his fingers interlaced through her own, the way her face was buried into his neck, how he smelled. She would picture this for the next two weeks until they would be together again.

As the elevator went much too quickly down to the lobby, Jess kept his free arm around Rory's shoulders while his other held her suitcase. He had been dreading saying goodbye since the day they said hi, but knowing that he had finally done it, had finally gotten her back, and in just 2 weeks could really start their relationship, made this goodbye much less painful.

The doors opened and he saw Rory take a deep breath, he just puller her even closer in to him and gently kissed her hair. Even though it must have been the 10th time he'd done it that day, he couldn't get enough. He just wanted to breath her in, make sure she was real, that this whole weekend wasn't a dream.

"So are you ready to go?" She looked up sadly at him as he asked.

"Yeah, I guess, but I wish I didn't have to."

"I know, it sucks that when we finally get this figured out you have to go, but aren't you excited for all the stuff you'll get to report on for the end of the campaign?" He didn't want to ruin this experience for her, he knew she was enjoying her job and hoped the next 2 weeks were perfect for her. Well, honestly, he hoped the rest of her life was perfect for her but for now he'd focus on the immediate future.

"Yeah, there will be a lot of excitement to cover, it might be kind of fun," she answered him hesitantly, chewing her lip as she thought it over.

"It will be a lot of fun, and you're going to love it. We'll be together in Stars Hollow before you even realize," they had reached the parking lot as he said this and they stopped, a few feet away from the bus.

"I know, you're right, its just hard," she pulled herself closer to him, holding onto the bottom of his shirt with one hand. He almost forgot everything he had just said and wanted to grab and run back into the hotel, let her bus leave without her. Instead, he just raised his right hand to her cheek, and pulled her lips toward his.

As he kissed her, he tried to tell her all of the promises he wouldn't say out loud. That she would be fine, that he would be waiting for her to come back, that after this he'd never say goodbye to her again. When he pulled back he hoped she understood that it was real this time. If this weekend had made him realize anything, it was that he was more ready for her than he ever had been.

**A/N: **In case anyone is from there, I have nothing against DC! I just needed to find a way to bring that conversation up and I thought that was the best way. Thanks for reading and hopefully reviewing!


	8. Arrivals

**A/N: ** I'm just trying to get to the good stuff! There are a bunch of chapters I have like pre-written in my head that have some important things, its just a matter of getting them out of my head into my computer and of writing the chapters that lead to them! But I'm trying my best, feel free to leave any suggestions/complaints/comments =)

And thank you to everyone who reviewed! They were all wonderful and I really appreciate all of your feedback. Thank you also to anyone who added this to your favorites/alert, I really appreciate it!

**Chapter 8: **Arrivals

Jess was right, the next 2 weeks flew by for Rory. After a long hug goodbye she had boarded her bus, waving to Jess who stood in the parking lot until she couldn't see him anymore. Now she sat in her Washington hotel room, looking at her schedule for the campaign's last 2 days. She was going to miss this, even though it had been hard sometimes, it was a great experience and she had learned a lot.

Just as she was finishing up her phone rang, she glanced at the screen, _Jess. _Smiling she immediately picked up.

"Hey! How's everything going? Almost done with whatever I'm gonna get to read?" She heard him sigh through the phone.

"_You can't rush the writer's process, come on Ror, you should know that." _She could tell he was kidding and hoped he was actually close to finishing.

"Hey, I've gotten used to writing under pressure and you should too. So what have you been up to?" She was laughing now, his calls always brightened her mood.

"_Not much, worked for a little bit in the store this morning but then I started editing a book we're putting out soon—not mine. How's your second to last day been?" _

"Pretty good, everyone is getting really excited and the atmosphere has been great, I wish you could see it. I was just going over my schedule. Tomorrow I'm busy all day but by 9 tomorrow night I'm done, I can pack up and get ready for my train in the morning."

"_That sounds great, I'm glad you can enjoy your last week. What time's your train on Thursday?" _

"Not until 1, I'm a little disappointed I wanted to leave earlier to get to Stars Hollow but there weren't many trains in the morning."

"_Don't worry I'm sure your mom will have plenty of time to eat pounds of junk food with you," _he teased her and she just laughed, knowing he was probably right.

"I should probably get to bed soon, long day ahead of me tomorrow. I miss you," she added the last part quickly, still a little shy of always sharing her feelings with him.

"_I miss you too Ror, have fun tomorrow and I'll see you really soon," _she felt silly for hesitating to tell him she missed him now.

"Yes you will, bye Jess."

"_Bye," _she hung up the phone and got into bed, excited for the next day, but even more so for Saturday, when she could finally see her boyfriend again. Boyfriend, it was weird to think of Jess as that again, but good weird. Amazing weird.

* * *

><p>It was almost 9:30 when Rory was heading back to the hotel, exhausted but exhilarated at the same time from her last day on the campaign. Now she had at least a week in Stars Hollow, Jess, and hopefully a new job to look forward to. She was walking towards the door when out of the corner of her eye she saw someone leaning against the side of a car, trying to read a book under the streetlight. It couldn't be.<p>

Trying to get a closer look she quietly walked closer to the car.

"Jess?" He looked up at the sound of his name and smiled, placing the book in his back pocket.

"Jess!" She yelled it this time, shocked and thrilled by his presence. She ran up to him and almost leaped into his arms, throwing her own around his neck and kissing him. She couldn't believe this was happening. He pulled away far too soon for her liking.

"So, this is a good surprise then?" She laughed at his question.

"Are you serious, this is amazing, I can't believe you drove all the way here," she threw herself back into his arms.

"Well, you mentioned that you wanted to leave earlier tomorrow so I thought I'd drive you. I can drop you off at the train station so your mom doesn't know, stay at a hotel in Hartford, and come to Stars Hollow on Friday. Same plan, you just have one less day to tell everyone. Sound fair?"

"You did drive for a very long time to get here, so I guess that's a deal," she smiled at him and how he had done so much just to come be here with her, even though he would've seen her in a few days.

"There is one condition though," he said, "I need a place to stay for the night," he smirked at her, in his usual way, and she just laughed and started pulling him towards the hotel.

They had taken their own walking tour of DC after Jess got his things settled in Rory's room, and even though they'd had a great night, as Jess woke up at 8 the following morning he thought maybe they should have ended it a little sooner. He couldn't complain though, he woke up to Rory asleep on his chest, her hair tickling his shoulder. It was too perfect to describe, and he was glad Rory was still asleep so she couldn't see the embarrassingly cheesy grin on his face. As he much as he hated to end it, they had to leave soon and so he gently shook Rory awake.

"Ror," he whispered softly into her ear, "get up its time to go to Stars Hollow." He thought she would get up for that but he only got a muffled groan in response.

"The quicker you wake up the quicker you can have some coffee," he felt her head lift a little at that.

"Coffee? Where?" he barely understood her as she talked into his shoulder so he lifted her face to meet his and gave her a gentle kiss. She smiled is response.

"Morning."

"Morning," he repeated back to her.

"That's a nice way to be woken up," she smiled again and he had to will himself to start getting out of bed. He easily put the few things he had brought back into his bag and then went to find Rory coffee. When he came back with it he was shocked to see that she was almost done packing already.

"Efficient in the morning? Before Coffee? What happened to you?" She feigned anger and proudly showed off her almost full suitcase.

"Hey, I can be productive in the morning. Especially when I have an incentive like going home for the first time in months. But seriously you need to hand over that coffee if you want to leave Washington with all of your limbs," he gave her the drink and a quick kiss. He could do that anytime he wanted now.

"Ready to get going then? We have about 6 hours of driving ahead of us, 7 with all the coffee and food stops I assume you'll want to make," he was actually hoping it would take longer, he liked the idea of hours of just him and Rory sitting in the car, talking and catching up on the last 2 weeks, more on the last 2 years, listening to music. He would never admit it though, he wasn't a very romantic guy, and was always embarrassed when he thought of something so, mushy.

For the second time since they had gotten back together they left a hotel, this time looking forward to what was ahead as they made their way to Jess's car. When they got there he stowed their bags in the trunk, and heard Rory let out an excited squeal as she got in the car.

"Jess! This is the book I've been wanting to read since I first heard about it, it doesn't come out for 2 weeks though, how did you get this?" She was yelling in excitement and lovingly held the book in front of her.

"My publishing connections might come in handy for you if you play your cards right," was the only explanation he gave her.

"This is amazing, thank you so much," he just shrugged until she leaned over to hug and kiss him. When she sat back down and he started to drive away he saw her look at him strangely, like she was trying to figure him out.

"What?"

"Nothing, it's just...you're…I…this was really nice," she finished, seeming to change her mind about what she was going to say. He just smiled and shook his head at her.

"It was nothing," and she stayed quiet but her hand slid across the center console and he felt her intertwine her fingers with his own.


	9. Turning Point

**A/N:** My first attempt at writing characters besides Rory and Jess, I hope they came off well. This is the longest chapter so far and I don't anticipate having many this long, I just really wanted to get to them telling Luke & Lorelai. Thanks again for all of the reviews! Please continue I love reading them!

**Chapter 9:** Turning Point

Rory woke up with her neck kind of stiff and looked over at Jess to see him fiddling with the CD player as he drove down the empty highway. On her other side the view out the window didn't offer any clues to where they were.

"Where are we?" she asked him, she had no idea how long she had been asleep.

"Not far actually, only about another hour away," she smiled at this, it was so good to be going home, for more than a couple of days this time. They had spent the first 4 hours of the ride just talking and laughing and listening to the many CDs he kept in his car.

She should have been surprised at how easy it had been, falling back into a relationship with him after so many years, but she couldn't even pretend she was. They had always worked together, even when they weren't actually together, it had been easy to talk to him and now it was almost like they'd never stopped.

"You can go back to sleep if you want, I'm fine," he interrupted her thoughts and she shook her head at his offer.

"I think I'll read some more of this book, its even better than I expected," she still couldn't believe he had gotten it early for her, and that he had driven hours to DC just to drive her home. When she found it casually sitting on the passenger seat she just stared at him in disbelief, and as they had driven away from her hotel she tried to figure out how he could honestly act as if this wasn't a big deal.

He always tried to be the tough guy, even now, he never accepted praise for his writing, and he when he did things that were sweet like go get her coffee while she was sleeping he just shrugged it off. But this was different, he had really done something amazing for her and she couldn't believe he didn't realize how romantic it was. He still didn't give himself enough credit, didn't see himself for all that he was. But now that they were dating again, she hoped that she could make him see how great of a man he had become, how great he had always been under his rough exterior.

She dove back into the book and before she knew it they were entering the Hartford train station. Jess parked safely behind the building where her mother would be waiting and helped get Rory's few bags out of the trunk.

He pulled her in for a goodbye kiss and she smiled into it, knowing that this time goodbye was only for a night.

"Bye," she waved to him as she made her way to where she would be meeting her mom. She was excited now though; she hadn't seen her mom in almost 3 months and knew they had quite a lot to catch up on.

Rory heard her mom before she saw her.

"Rory! Over here!" Her mom was running and waving towards her and Rory braced herself for the inevitable impact as her mom threw her arms around her. She eagerly hugged her back.

"Mom! I missed you so much! I'm so glad I'm finally here," she laughed as people gave them curious looks as they shrieked at each other in front of the train station.

"Come on, come on, let's get going, Luke has a feast waiting for us at the diner and I know the entire town is dying to see you, plus I have some things to catch you up on," her mom was talking to her excitedly and she tried to figure out when she should tell her about Jess. She thought it would be easier to tell her and Luke at the same time, but just the two of them so that meant the diner wouldn't do. She thought later that night, when they got back to her house and it was just the three of them.

As they headed back to Stars Hollow Rory and her mom talked animatedly about anything they had forgotten to mention in their phone conversations, their plans for while Rory was home, and wedding plans. Soon they were pulling up to the diner and Rory almost leapt out of the car as she saw through the window a table completely covered in food, with Luke approaching to add even more.

She ran inside and Luke quickly gave her a warm hug.

"Hey Rory, we've missed you around here, glad to be back?" She could only nod enthusiastically in response as she already had a mouthful of food. Luke just shook his head at her, but he still smiled, she knew he was happy to see her, but like Jess he often tried to hide his feelings. Jess…

Looking around the diner now she realized that for the first time in years, she could sit there and not have to try to ignore the memories that filled the space around her. The glances she gave him over her breakfast when her mom wasn't working, conversations they had about books, and once they had been dating, stolen kisses in the back room, making their way up to the apartment. She smiled at the memories now, they didn't hurt her anymore, they made her look forward to the future.

Just as she smiled at the thought, her mom came and sat down with her. When she asked her what the seemingly random grin on her face was from she lied and said it was just good to back. It seemed to work though as her mom started talking about what was left to do for the wedding and she let her thoughts drift back to where they were, ensuring the grin stayed in place.

* * *

><p>Later that night she was sitting on the couch of her home, grateful to finally have the other Gilmore woman sitting beside her when she heard the door open and turned to see Luke walk in holding their dinner, an excited Paul Anka running to greet him. She smiled at him and then walked to give him a hug and quick kiss hello.<p>

"How's the reunion going?" he knew how much she had been looking forward to Rory coming home, especially since it was longer than her short breaks from the campaign.

"It's great, we've already eaten at least 12 things that you wouldn't approve of," she teased him and he just shook his head at her. Suddenly Rory seemed to notice that Luke had come home.

"Hey, um, can I talk to you guys for a minute?" Rory seemed nervous and she and Luke just quickly looked at each other.

"Sure hun, lets just go to the kitchen and get all of the food out," she was a little concerned, Rory had seemed a little strange all day and she had a feeling she was about to find out why. They made their way to the kitchen and as look started putting various food onto plates Rory sat down facing the two of them looking entirely too serious for Lorelai's liking.

"So, what did you want to talk about? Wait, have you secretly been in the CIA this entire time and were actually traveling the world on a secret mission and now our lives are in danger? Or were you robbing banks and now you're-" she started to go off on a silly rant hoping to lighten Rory up a little bit, but apparently it hadn't worked because Rory just interrupted her.

"Mom, Luke, I wanted to tell you about something that happened almost 3 weeks ago," Luke just sat next to her, looking confused.

"Okay, I hope its nothing too serious," she was actually concerned now.

"No, well kind of, but in a good way, I think, and I hope you think so too," she stopped talking now and took a deep breath. Lorelai was getting nervous.

"Rory, sweetie, just say it you're killing me over here!"

"Okay, I'm sorry. Well like I mentioned three weeks ago the campaign was heading to Philadelphia for a couple of days, and well," Lorelai glanced at Luke for a second, shocked to see his mouth had fallen open in a way that said he was surprised, but happy. How did he already know what Rory was going to say? But she turned back to Rory as she continued her explanation.

"If you remember Mom I told you a little while after graduation what had happened the last time I was there, and I still felt really guilty about it," now Lorelai understood Luke's face, she thought she knew where this might be going too but stayed quiet.

"So, after a lot of thinking, I went to see Jess where he works, just to apologize, and see if we could be friends, and well, that's all I was expecting to do, but we wound up going to get coffee and then spending the next day together and one thing led to another and before I left we decided to, um, give it another try. Us, I mean, try us again," Rory met her gaze and she just sat still for a moment, she was surprised.

She knew Rory would have to see Jess again at the wedding and a part of her had been wondering how they were going to react to each other this time, it seemed that every time they were in the same place something was bound to happen. She looked at Luke again and saw he was just smiling in a knowing way. Rory was still waiting for a response from her though.

"Well I have to be honest here, I'm shocked. Luke apparently isn't but I am. Why didn't you tell me sooner? Or about going to see him at least?" She was a little hurt that Rory hadn't shared this with her, but then again she tended to keep things about him to herself, and Lorelai had never quite figured out if it was because she was still too hurt to bring him up or if she was just scared of her reaction.

"I'm sorry mom, I just, before I went I didn't even know what I was feeling so I didn't want to talk about it, and then once we got back together, I thought I would just wait to tell you in person, Luke too," she understood more now. Rory still thought she disapproved of Jess. A part of her kind of did, she would never forget how crushed Rory had been when he left, but Luke had told her how great he had been doing for himself and she knew he had changed over the years.

"Rory, if it's making you happy, then I am happy for you. I know he's different now, and so are you. You've both grown up, and you were never really able to leave each other's lives for too long. I probably should have seen this coming, actually, and it looks like Luke did," he shrugged at her.

"I've just gotten to understand Jess better over the years," Lorelai smiled at her fiancée. He really had, and she was glad that Jess had redeemed himself in Luke's eyes; he had always cared for him. She realized that he had redeemed himself to Rory too, and as she thought back to the day, months after the fact, when Rory confessed why she went back to Yale, she knew that had been more than enough to give him another chance.

"We'll all spend some time together while you're home and I can try to get to know the 'new Jess,' see if he's learned any more words," she added the second part smiling so Rory would know she was kidding.

"Thanks Mom, I appreciate it," she just reached over and hugged her daughter.

"I love you hun, just be happy," and for some reason there are suddenly tears in her eyes, like she knows this is a turning point, a day that years later she will look back on.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I decided to try writing from someone else's perspective instead of just Rory or Jess. What did you guys think? I'm not sure how I feel about it. Would you like to see more of that sometimes or should I just stick to their views? Let me know in reviews!


	10. A Plan

**A/N: **Thank you for all of the reviews! I really appreciated all of them and your opinions on the POV thing. Kind of an in-between chapter, the next chapter will have some more important things.

**Chapter 10:** A Plan

Jess hung up the phone relieved to hear that Lorelai had taken the news well and was willing to give him another chance, one that this time he wouldn't mess up. He had known Luke would be okay with it; he had a feeling Luke understood their situation more than they did sometimes. He had spend the night in his hotel room writing and trying to wrap his head around the fact that he was actually with Rory again, after all the failed attempts and screw-ups, he had done it. As he fell asleep that night he vowed to himself that he would make it count this time.

The next morning he drove to Stars Hollow, just realizing that now that entire freak show of a town would see that he was with Rory again, their princess. He tried to push the thought out of his mind as he got his stuff out of the car and started walking towards Luke's.

He opened the door not too surprised to see Rory and her mom sitting at a table, eating a late breakfast while Luke hovered around them refilling coffee and talking. They saw him as the door opened and Rory smiled warmly at him as Lorelai waved him over.

"There's the hoodlum! Come, join us!" he stopped himself from rolling his eyes at her little nickname and went over to them, avoiding eye contact with Babette and Miss Patty as he walked past their table.

"It's good to see you Jess," Luke smiled and patted him on the back as he approached them, "want something to eat?" Jess nodded and thanked him and then as he sat down heard Babette attempting to whisper to Patty about him.

"_Did Lorelai just invite Jess to sit with her Rory? I thought she hated him! I thought Rory hated him! What is going on?" _As Jess sat down he raised his eyebrows at Rory, silently asking her what they should do, how to act. She must've gotten the idea because she just shrugged and leaned over to give him a quick kiss. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Patty and Babette's mouths drop, along with some other curious people seated around them.

He just laughed and shook his head as Rory looked at him apologetically, "I'm sorry Jess, when they came up to me to welcome me back and asked if I had a boyfriend, I didn't know what to do, if I should tell them so-" Lorelai interrupted her to finish the story.

"So I, being the amazing mother that I am, swooped in to save the day by saying that Luke needed Rory in the kitchen," Jess laughed at that.

"And what could Luke possibly have needed her in there for?"

* * *

><p>"I don't know, maybe some kind of wedding surprise for her mother, who as previously stated is wonderful," Rory just laughed and continued to eat her breakfast. He decided he'd try and stay in Lorelai's good graces, keep her good mood up, and try to ignore the whispering all around them.<p>

"So, how are the wedding plans coming?"

A little while later they were walking around town on their way to Andrew's to get some books for the week. Jess had his arm casually around her shoulders and Rory couldn't help but smile, thinking back to years ago when they walked similarly through the town in colder weather. However the more they walked the more shocked expressions she saw that quickly brought her back to the present.

"Wow, people really can't believe that I'm with you again huh?" she knew he had noticed the staring in Luke's-it wasn't exactly subtle.

"I guess not," he shrugged, "but at least you were right about your mom being okay with it for now," she saw the relief on his face when they were having breakfast and her mom was able to have a conversation with him. She was impressed too when he asked about the wedding plans, that was one way to get Lorelai happy and they had gotten through the whole meal without any awkwardness between them. Suddenly she realized something.

"You know Jess, we aren't exactly done telling people yet," she looked at him nervously.

"I'm sure Taylor will find out from Patty and when he comes after me I'll just have Luke distract him with something about whatever the next dumb event coming up is," she rolled her eyes at his response and couldn't believe he didn't realize yet.

"I meant my grandparents," he abruptly stopped walking and stood frozen on the sidewalk.

"Oh," was all he said at first. She chewed her lip nervously as she tried to read his expression, which had suddenly gone blank. After another minute of silence she tried speaking first.

"Well, I mean, if you want this to be serious and see it lasting for a while, they're gonna have to know. You may even have to go to another Friday night dinner, but you do owe me one if I remember correctly," she looked down when she was done speaking. Did he see it lasting for a while? She was scared of her grandparents' reactions too but if they were going to be together she'd have to tell them.

"I do," she barely heard him he had been so quiet.

"What?"

"I do want it to be serious and see it last for a while, and I do owe you a dinner too. But not tonight Ror, please? I need some time to mentally prepare myself and I promise I'll come next week if you're going," she looked at him surprised and thrilled. It was good to know he was hopeful about them as well, and she hadn't expected him to agree so easily.

"Of course, next week is fine! I know mom and Luke have been going every other week since I'm gone but while I'm home we said we'd go every week, so next week is fine. After that you may not have to go back too many times don't worry, especially since once I get a job somewhere we're going to figure out how often they're gonna end up being. But thank you Jess really, it means a lot to me that you're coming, and I actually think I have a plan that will make every-"he cut her off with an unexpected passionate kiss and she felt him pull her closer by her waist and she eagerly responded, bringing her arms around his neck.

"What was that for?" she asked breathlessly when he pulled away.

"There were some people looking at us, like they were trying to figure out what's going on. I thought I'd show them," he smirked and she saw Babette running across the square away from them, clearly bursting to tell someone the latest thing she saw. Smiling up at him she gave him another quick kiss and they continued to walk towards the bookstore.

"So you were saying something about a plan?" he asked and she realized she had completely forgotten her, in her own opinion, brilliant idea.

"Oh! Okay, well I was thinking that maybe tonight at my grandparents, I'll tell them that I have a new boyfriend and just describe you, but without telling them it's you, since my grandma probably has never gotten past the whole black eye thing. So from your description and my mom and Luke vouching for you they'll like you, and when you come next week I'll explain," she finished excitedly, hoping he would agree to it. She knew her grandfather wouldn't be a problem, he would like Jess as soon as she tells him he's a writer, but she thought her grandmother might need to be eased into the idea of it.

"You really think that will work?" he was looking at her doubtfully, and she tried to stay optimistic.

"I think it will help, and it doesn't matter to me too much what they think, them liking you would just make my life a little bit easier," she smiled at him. It was true, while it would be nice to not have her grandparents on her case about who she was dating, it didn't matter in the end.

The kiss he gave her in response just reaffirmed her own thoughts. Even with the time apart, the first few weeks of their relationship had been amazing, and she wasn't going to let any reaction from her grandmother get in the way of whatever laid ahead of them now that they were together.


	11. Two Dinners

**A/N: **I can't believe how many of you are adding this to story alert and favorite stories! Thank you so much! And for the reviews, I love getting these emails; you're all the best readers ever!

**Chapter 11: **Two Dinners

"So we're all familiar with the plan right?" Rory asked her mom and Luke as they walked up the path to her grandparent's front door.

"Yes Rory, for the 12th time we talk about Jess as if he's not Jess," her mom responded while Luke just nodded. She may be annoying about it, but she really thought it was the best way to approach her grandparents about Jess. The town's shocked reactions hadn't made her feel any better, anytime she and Jess went somewhere together there were wide eyes and dropped jaws staring at them. She took a deep breath and rang the doorbell.

When the door opened the three standing outside were shocked for a moment when Emily herself answered the door with Richard standing closely behind.

"Rory! It's so great to see you, you look beautiful, we've missed you around here," her grandmother was smiling warmly at her and she hoped this good mood would continue for the rest of the night.

"Hi Grandma," she gave her a hug as a maid appeared to take their coats.

"Rory, you must fill us in on how the last few months of the campaign have been, I've been reading your articles of course, but I would like to hear your true perspective, whatever didn't make it into the magazine," her grandfather was smiling at her and she appreciated his interest in her work. At least Jess will probably have him as an ally, she thought.

They made their way to the living room where Richard served them drinks and she told her grandparents how work had been since she'd last seen them a few months before. They listened intently, proud of her accomplishments and what she had been a part of. But soon it was time to move to the dining room for dinner and on their way in her grandmother brought up the subject she had been nervous about.

"So, Rory, I guess traveling like that didn't allow you much time to meet anyone new? No time for dating?" Her grandmother looked at her expectantly while her mom and Luke just waited to hear how she would start "the plan."

"Actually Grandma, it's funny you should ask that. Just a few weeks ago we stopped in Philadelphia for a few days where I ran into an old friend," she noticed her grandmother start smiling hopefully at her, "and well, he'd really changed a lot since I'd last seen him and we found that we were reconnecting very well, and after spending my time there with him, we decided to start dating. It's been really great so far." She looked up at her grandparents when she had finally finished and saw that her grandfather was just giving her a nice smile, he had never been too interested in her personal life, while her grandmother looked thrilled.

"That's wonderful Rory! Tell us about this 'old friend" what does he do?"

"He works for a publishing house and bookstore in Philly, and they're actually expanding and opening another location soon, which he's kind of in charge of. And he's a writer, he published his first book a few years ago and is working on another," she smiled nervously at her grandmother to see if she would approve, but before she could say anything, her grandfather spoke from the other side of the table.

"A writer and businessman? Why I must meet this young man!" Rory smiled in relief, her grandfather would really like Jess, she knew it, and then her grandmother spoke up.

"Yes, we would love to meet him Rory. I agree with your grandfather he sounds like a wonderful man," Lorelai joined the conversation then.

"He is Mom, and he had really changed since before—before Rory ran into him again. Yes I met him before and after and he has matured a lot and I think you'll like this new and improved version of him-Rory's old friend," she shook her head at her mother's rambling, she had made the whole story seem strange, luckily her grandmother didn't seem to notice.

"Do you think you could bring him to dinner next week Rory? Give us a chance to meet him?"

"Yeah sure Grandma, I'll invite him for then," Her grandmother smiled again and seemed happy for Rory to have someone in her life, she just hoped some of it would last until she realized just what old friend they were talking about.

* * *

><p>The following week went by way too quickly for Rory. She spent it hanging out with her mom, Lane, and Sookie and with Jess as much as possible until Tuesday, when he had gone back to Truncheon for a few days.<p>

A lot of her time had also been spent fielding questions from various townspeople who could no longer stop themselves from finding out about Jess. She gave them the simplest answer possible: they had spent time together when she was in Philadelphia and were now dating again, after that she usually found an excuse to leave the conversation.

Now it was Friday again, and she had to spend Jess's first night back trying to defend him from her grandmother's inevitable fury. She, her mother, and Luke had just gotten out of the car when Jess pulled up the driveway behind them.

As he got out of the car Rory couldn't help but smile at how he had tried to look good for her family. She knew he would never admit it, but he his hair was done well and he wore a nice buttoned shirt with his jeans, and she could tell he had recently shaved.

"Hey," he gave her a smile that was probably supposed to be casual but she could see the nerves behind it. She gave him a quick kiss hello and they joined her mom and Luke at the door.

"So are you ready Jess?" her mother asked him, as if he had a choice.

"I guess so," he mumbled and Rory took his hand and squeezed it.

"Don't forget they both thought you sounded great last week and Grandpa has no prior impression of you so it might not be too bad," she tried to give him a reassuring smile but was pretty scared herself. She was relieved when her mother spoke up.

"Don't worry Jess, if things start to get tense I'll just tell her Luke is thinking of setting up a burger buffet at the wedding and her head exploding should create enough of a diversion for you to sneak out," Jess just laughed and Rory took a deep breath as she rung the doorbell.

The Gilmore's most recent maid answered the door and took their coats as they made their way to the living room. Rory prepared herself as her grandfather stood up to introduce himself and her grandmother turned from where she stood to face them.

"You're here, now I must say I've been looking forward—what are you doing here?" Her tone changed and her smile disappeared from her face as she saw Jess standing beside Rory. Her grandfather clearly didn't know what was going on as he walked over to shake Jess's hand.

"Oh you must be Rory's boyfriend, I'm Richard, her grandfather," he was smiling warmly at Jess who smiled back at him.

"It's nice to meet you, sir, I'm Jess," Rory saw her grandmother's expression become even more severe at the sound of his name.

"Richard! Don't you know who this is! This is the same Jess from years ago when Rory was in high school, that awful boy who showed up with a black eye and was missing from her graduation!" Clearly there was no chance that her grandmother wouldn't recognize him.

"Grandma, let me explain," she started to try to calm her grandmother down but she kept talking anyway.

"Rory, you lied to us, you did not tell me that this is who you were talking about," and before Rory could try again Luke, who usually tried to stay quiet at these dinners, spoke up.

"I'm sorry to get involved here Emily, but Rory didn't lie, everything she said about Jess is true. He is my nephew so I've always kept in touch with him and he's really changed and has a great job now, so I think he deserves a second chance," everyone in the room was staring at Luke dumbfounded. Her grandfather was the first to speak.

"Well, I've never met Jess before and I can barely even remember the story Emily is talking about, so Jess, if you don't mind, I would like to hear about the book that you wrote, I don't know if Rory has told you but I'm quite the avid reader," Rory gave him the most appreciative smile she could muster.

"Actually, Grandpa, I brought you one of my copies in case you wanted to read it, it's very good," she handed her grandfather the book and he thanked her. As all of this occurred Rory had noticed her mother shooting her grandmother warning looks form across the room.

"Look, Mrs. Gilmore, I know last time I was here it didn't go well, and I'm sorry for that. But that was a really long time ago, almost 6 years actually, and Rory and I, we've had our issues before but we've moved past them. I know we haven't been together for too long this time around, but I would like to be, and you're a big part of her life so I hope you can get to know me how I am now, because I want to be a big part of her life too."

Rory didn't think it was possible for the room to be even more shocked than after Luke spoke but Jess had done it. Her mother's mouth had dropped, she and Luke were staring at each other with eyebrows raised, and her grandparents were just staring at Jess, her grandfather with a hint of a smile on his face. Finally, her grandmother broke the silence.

"Dinner should be ready at any moment, let's go sit," her voice was flat and emotionless. The group made their way into the dining room, and Rory again gave Jess's hand a reassuring squeeze when her mother approached her to whisper in her ear.

"Luke and Jess both spoke multiple sentences at one time? To my parents? This is going to be one hell of a dinner."


	12. Truths

**A/N:** I think this is one of my favorites so far! It went somewhere I wasn't expecting to but I was pleasantly surprised at the end. I hope you guys agree, let me know in reviews! And thank you to those you have been reviewing and for everyone reading, I'm overwhelmed with some of the great response this is getting, thanks again!

**Chapter 12:** Truths

Jess sat next to Rory at the dinner table and answered all of her grandfather's questions about Truncheon, how it worked, what he was planning for the new location. He was glad to tell him, it kept her grandmother quiet and she hadn't said anything to him after his little outburst, just looked at him when he spoke, stone-faced.

He was actually trying to make a good impression, he had spent everyday hoping things with him and Rory would really work this time, and having her grandparents approve would only help. So far he was doing well with Richard, he seemed satisfied with all of Jess's answers, but Emily's silence was pretty terrifying. He thought he was in the clear when Lorelai steered the conversation towards wedding plans but realized he was wrong when suddenly in the middle of Luke's sentence she addressed him.

"So, Jess where is your family from?" Everyone at the table seemed alarmed, she had finally spoken again, in an almost accusatory tone.

"Well, I grew up in New York, but my father lives in California now, I don't see him often, and my mother, Luke's sister, actually lives in Stars Hollow with her husband and my half-sister," he thought maybe reminding her that he was related to Luke would help his cause a little, she had grown to like him. She had no reaction to his answer.

"I see, and where did you go to college?" He took a deep breath before answering; he knew this wouldn't go over well.

"I didn't actually, well not when you're supposed to. But last year I did take a few night classes at a local college and I was thinking of doing that again in the fall," he gave her a small smile; maybe she would see that he was trying. Before she could answer though Rory turned to him, shock all over her face.

"Wait you did? I didn't know that, why didn't you tell me?" Her smile took up her entire face and he regretted having never told her, but he was never one to brag.

"It didn't come up I guess," he shrugged, she just shook her head in disbelief, but the smile stayed where it was.

"Why didn't you go after high school Jess?" Cleary Emily was not impressed, but while he thought of the best way to explain, Rory spoke for him.

"You know what Grandma, I think it's time to give Jess a little break okay? He's answered all of your questions, many of which did not sound friendly by the way, and I would like to have a nice night, and you being rude to my boyfriend who is trying really hard to change your impression of him will not let that happen. So let's change the subject please?" He hated that Rory had to defend him, but appreciated it all the same, at least she was still on his side.

In the car later that night Jess was stopped at a red light that Rory knew happened to last unusually long so she took the opportunity to lean across the car and kiss him the way she had wanted to when he first pulled up to her grandparents' house. She only pulled away when from the corner of her eye she saw the light turn green.

"Are you trying to make me get us into another accident?" he asked as he began to drive again. She laughed at his remark and leaned back in her seat.

"I never got a chance to give you a proper hello kiss, and I wanted to thank you for tonight," everything he had done meant a lot to her. How hard he had tried to gain her grandparents approval, the things he had said, finding out that he had taken college classes, he would never get too sappy in front of anyone but tonight he had really showed a different side to himself.

"I've just gotten better at being fake-nice to people over the years," he smirked at her as he pulled up in front of the diner, closed by then, where he was staying while in Stars Hollow. As she got out of the car she noticed he stayed in his seat, and looked as if he was lost in thought.

She walked around to his side of the car, "Jess? Are you okay?" He smiled weakly at her and got out, wrapping an arm around her waist.

"Yeah sorry, just, thinking about something," she was a little concerned, the look on his face seemed like a mixture of nerves and confusion. He stayed quiet as he unlocked the door to the diner and led her inside. She took a seat at the counter as he made them some coffee and waited for the look on his face to go away but it stayed as he poured coffee into two mugs and came to sit next to her.

"Jess, what is it, tell me," she put her coffee down and turned to face him, her eyes searching his looking for an answer in the warm brown that she swore was the exact color of the drink in her mug.

"I've just been wondering, earlier you told your grandfather you brought him one of your copies of my book, how many do you have?" He said the whole thing slowly, she could tell he was afraid to ask her and didn't know why. But as she thought about her answer she blushed and stared at the floor.

"Umm, about 5 I think," she continued to look at the floor between them, feeling silly for having so many when they weren't even talking during the time she got them. "I have the one you gave me, and then I went to the bookstore in Hartford you told me was carrying it so I could actually buy a copy, and well, when I was on the campaign I liked to look around local bookstores wherever we stopped, and whenever I saw yours, I just, I had to buy it. It was so strange, being so far away and everything but then seeing your name staring at me, I just, I had to get it," she finished her explanation and let out a breath before she looked up at him again.

He was staring at her like as if he couldn't believe she was there, like she was a figment of his imagination suddenly sitting next to him. When she opened her mouth to question him he cut her off with the sudden feel of his lips on hers as he pressed her back against the counter. He lifted her off her feet and she wrapped her legs around his waist automatically as he began to walk them back towards the stairs, stopping occasionally to kiss her more forcefully.

She thought she was going to forget how to breathe, he had completely taken over her mind and she was lost in their kiss. He struggled for the door but didn't put her down until they were standing over his bed, the same bed that had mocked them so mercilessly when they were making out on the couch across the room so many years before.

As he laid her down he only stopped kissing her to get their shirts over their heads and she groped at his back. If she had known it would lead to this, and to whatever he was currently feeling, she would've told him about all of the books weeks ago. The only coherent thoughts she'd had since they were downstairs were interrupted by him whispering something into her neck as he trailed kisses down it.

"I love you," it had been so quietly mumbled into her skin she wasn't sure if she had heard correctly, or that she was supposed to.

"I love you," this time she heard it more clearly as he spoke into her collarbone.

"I love you," into her shoulder, it was like he was speaking to each part of her body, punctuating his words with a kiss to every spot. She couldn't bear to hear him say it again without a response.

She threaded her fingers through his hair and pulled his face to her own. She stared into his eyes that were darker than she had ever seen them, filled with passion, emotion, and love, but at the same time fear, and hope. She could actually see his feelings for her, gathered to a point in his eyes.

"I love you," she repeated the words back to him and watched as the color changed to lighter golden brown, the heaviness gathered there lifted with her assurance.

"I love you," she said it again as she pulled his lips down to meet her own. Two mouths that had finally spoken the truth they had been hiding from for years.

**A/N: **Saved this for the end because it's not related to the chapter, but the other night an idea randomly popped into my head for a really short one-shot and I wrote it up on the spot. It's a simple future lit, unrelated to this story, that's basically some fluff from Jess's POV. Think you'd like to see it? I can't decide if I should post it or not! Let me know what you think, I don't want to say anything else and ruin it in case it is posted!


	13. Acceptance

**A/N: **Not much to say, just thanks again for reviews/alerts/favorites! They are always welcome and appreciated. Also, FF is being weird and not letting me add page breaks so I did my best to separate perspectives. I hope you like!

**Chapter 13: **Acceptance

Jess woke up the next morning smiling, the real smile that even though he would never admit it, he only had for Rory. But it began to fade as he realized that he was alone in the small bed. The last thing he remembered before falling asleep was Rory kissing his cheek as she laid her head on his shoulder. Now she was gone.

He immediately blamed himself; it had been too soon, way too soon. They had only been together for a month now, and he had told her he loved her, more than once. He couldn't help it; he'd been holding it in ever since he'd watched her get on the bus in Philadelphia. He knew he was a goner then, but that didn't mean she was anywhere near ready for what he had said.

But she had 5 copies of his book, five. He couldn't contain himself anymore. She had said it back, but that could easily have been a heat of the moment thing, the moment, after all, had been…heated. This couldn't be the end of it, they had to last longer this time, he had been counting on that.

He was in the middle of trying to decide whether he should run to her house and apologize or give her some time to relax when the door to the apartment opened. In came Rory, wearing a pair of his shorts and his T-shirt from the night before, trying to balance a plate loaded with food and two cups of coffee. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

"Good morning," she smiled and set the food down on the table, coming over to hand him a mug, "I didn't want to wake you but I was starving."

She planted a quick kiss on his lips as he took the coffee, relieved to see her, in a good mood even, but still nervous.

"I got pancakes and bacon and some eggs too just in case," he nodded in agreement but didn't move to join her at the table. After a few bites of pancakes she seemed to notice he was still sitting on the bed.

"Jess? Are you okay?" She sounded normal, he didn't know if he should bring up what happened the night before or just pretend it never happened.

"Yeah, sorry, just tired," he gave her a weak smile that he hoped was convincing.

"Oh, okay," it must not have been because she sounded just as nervous as he did. After a few more moments of silence he made a decision. Not talking to her had wrecked their relationship the first time around; he had to at least try to 'communicate' this time. He cautiously approached the table and sat down next to her.

"Look Ror, I'm sorry about last night, if it, was too soon or upset you, I don't…I don't want things to move too fast for you," he looked at his hands on the table the whole time and didn't look up as she answered him.

"What about last night?" She sounded genuinely confused so he looked up to meet her gaze, there was a small wrinkle between her eyebrows and she seemed to be trying to remember the events of the night before, considering the slight blush in her cheeks.

"What I said, when we first came upstairs, after you told me about the books," he drew out each phrase slowly, trying not to let any emotion seep in and alter his message.

"Oh," she looked startled, "well I said it too." He nodded slowly.

"I know you did, but I understand if you felt you had to, or was an in the moment thing, I just, there's no pressure on you, okay?" It was hard enough for him to talk about his feelings; he didn't need to drag it on.

"Jess, I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it, and I don't think it's too soon," he was genuinely shocked, he didn't think she was ready for that, then before he could say anything she explained, "we have a lot of lost time to make up for." But then her expression changed to one of fear.

"Unless you think it's soon and it was an in the moment thing because if so that's fine I just-" he silenced her as in one swift motion he moved closer to her and kissed her gently.

"You really have 5 copies?" he asked very softly when his lips were just millimeters from hers. She bit her lip and nodded.

"And I really meant it last night," she spoke just as softly as he had and he smiled as they kissed again.

"Me too," he murmured, "always have."

-

Rory was still floating as she walked up to her house a little while later, or at least she felt like it. She was in love with Jess. And he was in love with her. And instead of repressing it or pretending the feeling didn't exist they were together and telling each other that they were in love. They had grown up, and she was happy. Maybe now they could both stop getting paranoid when the other went to get breakfast in the morning.

She was still practically singing as she went to the mailbox and opened it to find letters from 3 different papers that she had applied to, as if one wasn't enough to terrify her. She read the return addresses: _Hartford Courant, Boston Herald, Wall Street Journal. _There were 3 others she hadn't heard back from yet, but she held in her hand the biggest contenders.

Taking a deep breath she opened each envelope and her eyes grew wider for every sentence. Three acceptances. Each was for a slightly different position, but she had been offered three jobs. And one was at the _Wall Street Journal. _That was the second best to the _Times_, she got excited at the thought. But then Hartford was close to home and she had missed it so much over the past 2 years. Boston was exciting too, Paris always made it sound great. She knew pro-con lists would soon be forming.

It was almost like getting acceptances to three different colleges at once again, the way the happiness and nerves and weight of the decision all combined in her. Ignoring the rest of the mail, she ran inside to get her mom, a pen, and lots of paper.

Jess quickly walked up the front porch of the house and before he could even finish knocking the door was flung open by an energetic Lorelai.

"Hoodlum, you're here! And you brought the reinforcements!" she grabbed the 'Luke's' bags out of his hands and motioned for him to follow her into the living room, where Rory sat at the table with a mass of papers surrounding her.

"Yeah, Rory called and said she had big news a couple hours ago but I had to help Luke with the dinner rush before I could come, is everything okay?" He was confused by the scene in front if him, but before he could look for further clues Rory had removed herself from the mess and flung her arms around him.

"Jess! You're here," she gave him a quick kiss and then began pulling him back to where she had sat as her mom went to make them all plates.

"Yeah, but what's going on?" Before she could answer though he finally got a good look at the papers on the table, and the headings they had on top.

"Ror, did you, did you get job offers from all of these?" He looked at her incredulously, he knew many would accept her, he read almost everything she wrote and she had so much talent, but seeing three huge newspapers like this was almost overwhelming. She smiled widely at him but nodded shyly. Like him, she was never one to brag.

"That's incredible, really congratulations," he pulled her back into his arms and kissed her cheek, she was really something. She seemed happy with his response and stayed in his arms as she pulled him down to sit on the floor with her.

"Thank you, but now I have to pick which one to accept! Right now it's really down to the _Wall Street Journal _or the _Hartford Courant_, I mean they both have a lot of pro's and some cons so now I'm weighing which has more important pros and more trivial cons, because if you look at the _Journal-_" he had to stop her there.

"Look, I know you really like these lists and they help with a lot of things, but honestly tell me, where do you want to work?" He wanted her to choose what she wanted and would make her happiest, not what made the most sense.

"Don't ask me what I think, don't list off the cost of living in each city, just tell me, is there a certain job you have a good feeling about? That you think you would really enjoy? If not, list away, I'll get you some more pens, but if there is, I think with something this big, you follow your gut," he was surprised to have her mouth suddenly pressed against his and by the time he responded he heard Lorelai call from the kitchen that everything was heated up and ready.

"Thank you Jess," Rory took his hand in her own to help get off from the floor.

"So you have a good feeling about one then?" He was really eager to find out what she was going to do, after all, it might help him in some of his own decisions.

"I do, but I have to tell you and Mom at the same time, she'll never forgive me if you know before she does," with that she smiled and led him into the kitchen.


	14. It Is What It Is

**A/N:** Hey guys! Sorry it took so long to update, I know I had been posting frequently but then school got crazy and I didn't have much time to work on it. But finally, I got this out. Also, starting right after this chapter, I will probably skip some more time between chapters. I want to get to certain things without making the story 100 chapters long, but I'll always mention how much time has passed.

Also wanted to say thanks to Nymphadora, for pointing out what you did in your review. I was feeling the same way and will definitely be working on that in the next few chapters. And thanks to all of my reviewers! I appreciate every single one I get and I'm glad you're enjoying it so far!

**Chapter 14: It Is What It Is**

Despite the late August heat around them, Rory leaned in closer to Jess and he automatically tightened his arm around her shoulders. She was walking back to the diner with him under the pretense of bringing back leftover pie, but really she just wanted some alone time with Jess without having to deal with her mom making kissy noises at her for 2 days.

"So, what do you think?" When she told Jess and her mom about her decision they both eagerly congratulated her, but that was all that he had specifically said. Even though her mom had said enough for all of them, she wanted to know what he really thought.

"What do I think about what?"

"About my job! About the _Wall Street Journal,_ about New York, everything," she look at him expectantly, she didn't know exactly why, but his opinion was really important to her. She wasn't going to change her mind now; she had listened to his advice and went with what felt right. But still, she was curious.

"Honestly? I think it's great," she hadn't realized how much it mattered to her until his crooked grin caused her body to flood with relief.

"Really?" Her smile grew wider and he gave her a quick kiss.

"Yeah, really. It's an amazing job, come on Ror, staff writer for the Politics section? Plus, I think you'll like New York."

"It is a good job isn't it? I'll get to travel sometimes, and they said there's a lot of room to move up, and New York! I can't believe I'm going to live in New York. It's exciting! Plus it's close enough that I can come home and visit when I want," they were approaching the diner as she finished speaking, almost breathless from excitement.

"It's pretty close to Philly too I hear," he said it casually, like he really had just overheard it somewhere, but Rory had been hoping he'd say something like that. She bit her lip a little and turned to face him.

"98.6 miles," when she said it he looked at her speechlessly, "I mean it's not 22.8 but it's not bad either." He stopped walking abruptly.

"You're serious? You looked it up?" Rory laughed in response, remembering the conversation from when she was in high school, the one that after he had left baffled her, it made it seem like he would be around while she was at Yale. She ignored the past feelings of hurt that she suddenly remembered and just kept smiling at him.

"So you still want to do this?" He wouldn't meet her gaze as he said it and she desperately wanted to see what emotion his eyes were betraying, she didn't even know what he meant.

"The _Journal? _Yeah, I mean I'm nervous but—"

"No, I mean this," he stepped closer to her and took her hands in his. Inexplicably, Rory suddenly felt anger surge throughout her body. She thought they had settled this during breakfast, but already he was back to doubting her.

"Are you serious Jess?" She took a step back from him and stared in disbelief, " you're really asking me that? I just told you how much distance is between Philly and New York, I spent weeks away from you talking to you at every chance we had, and now that we're together I thought I made it pretty clear that I'm enjoying…everything! What else do I have to do to show you that I'm in this?"

She stopped to catch her breath and felt a little satisfied at the look of shock on his face. She hadn't meant to explode like that, but she didn't want him to think she was constantly about to break up with him. She saw Jess open his mouth to say something but then close it before he could, so she spoke again, but this time, more calmly.

"Jess, I just, I need you to have some faith in me. We're adults now, and need to trust each other, okay? I was so excited to have you show me around New York, help me find an apartment and the best places to go. So please, just accept the fact that I'm not going anywhere, so we don't have to do this all the time." She stepped closer to him as she finished, she really didn't want this to turn into a fight.

"You're right," he quickly met her gaze but then looked back down at the street, running a hand through his hair. She hoped he had more to say and waited quietly for him to continue.

"I'm sorry, I do trust you, I just find it hard to believe sometimes, that after everything, we're…we're here." He shrugged and finally held her gaze and Rory understood what he was trying to say. She smiled and stepped even closer to him.

"Hey it is what it is, you and me," he looked surprised at her words and then smiled a real, genuine smile, one that she knew not many people got to see. She closed the small gap between them and felt him embrace her as he gently kissed her hair.

"I love you Jess," she felt his arms wrap even tighter around her.

"I love you too," and suddenly she wished that there were going to be a lot less than 98 miles between them.

* * *

><p>When Jess awoke in the morning he was immediately disappointed, as he remembered that Rory had not spent the night in the Luke's old apartment as she had been doing for the past few days. He liked having her sleep next to him, and the thought reminded him of what he needed to do.<p>

The past few days had been spent helping Rory prepare for her move to New York. She and Lorelai had been shopping, they had become convinced that Rory needed an entirely new work wardrobe, and in between trips he had been helping Rory look for apartments online. She wanted to be moved in by the beginning of September, that way she had a few days to settle in before work started, but now that was only a week away.

Caught up in all of the activity, along with helping Luke in the diner, writing, trying to spend some time with Doula, and hiding from the various townspeople intrusively asking about his reunion with Rory, he'd barely had time to talk to Matt and Chris. But he didn't want to put it off any longer, and picked up his phone to call Truncheon.

"Hey Matt, sorry I haven't been in touch but I wanted to talk to you guys, is Chris around?" He waited for his other friend to come to the phone and then took a deep breath before beginning what he had prepared to say.

"Before you can even ask, yes I have been writing, don't worry. But listen, we've been debating where to open Truncheon II for a while now, and I know I've been promoting Boston and New York but I wanted to talk to you about New York. I know it's more expensive, but I've been doing some research and found a few places that we could afford, it's closer to Philly so it'd be easier to go back and forth when necessary, and now for my newest reason: I'll be the one to go if we do New York. I know none of us really wanted to leave, but I do, if it's New York. You can both stay in Philly, I am volunteering to leave and start the new location. So, what do you think?"

He waited for their response. His conversation with Rory the night she had accepted her job had made up his mind, he wanted to go to New York. Even if Matt and Chris agreed, it would still take months, but eventually he would be there, and that was all that mattered.


	15. Return to New York

**A/N: **Hello everyone! I'm so sorry for the unacceptable amount of time this took me, it's been crazy with school and work and everything, and I wasn't too excited about this chapter but I finally got it done. Also if anyone's interested, I posted a short oneshot, just some Lit fluff, if you want to check it out it's called Hyphen. Anyway, I hope you enjoy and I definitely will not take so long with the next update! Reviews always encourage me!

**Chapter 15: Return to New York **

This was it, the big day. Weeks of anticipation and nerves and excitement, she was finally moving to New York, just 4 days before her job started at the _Wall Street Journal. _ She had looked at what felt like thousands of apartment ads online, until she narrowed it down to the top three. One shopping and coffee filled weekend with her mother later, and Rory had found her apartment, her own real place.

Jess had been at Truncheon for a week but was meeting her, Lorelai, and Luke in New York to help them set up her apartment and move everything in. Despite her adamant denials when her mom teased her every time he called, Rory really missed Jess. She was hoping that he didn't mind this first drive and would be visiting her often.

Almost two months in, Rory was getting used to having Jess in her life again, and she was just, happy. When he was in Stars Hollow they watched movies and went to the diner, browsed through the bookstore and read together on the bridge. It was like she was in high school again, except all of the doubts she'd had about him were gone, and they spent most nights together.

It may all still be new, but Rory thought it was almost unbelievable how easily they fell into their relationship, and excited as she was for the new job and city, she was also filled with nerves about what would come next for them. But for now, she would just carry her last box to Luke's truck and trust that more happiness lay ahead.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Jess went to throw away the empty boxes from the only move-in he'd ever been to that required hourly food breaks. Lorelai and Rory had shared a tearful hug goodbye, as Rory finished unpacking things into the first place that was really her own. Even though Lorelai was coming to have dinner with Rory on Wednesday to hear about her first few days of work, Jess knew that this was a big deal for them and actually felt bad that he was staying the night, when her mother was forced to say goodbye.<p>

But Rory had asked him to stay so that they could spend Saturday exploring her neighborhood, finding the best coffee and quickest way to get to her office. He had agreed easily, wanting to spend as much time with her as possible and hoping to get a chance to tell her his news.

So he threw the trash away and walked back into the apartment, laughing as he realized that she had already opened the bag of coffee Luke had given her, meant to hold her over for much longer than it actually would.

"Careful, I don't think Luke is going to support you going through that much coffee in a week, he might limit your supply," she just laughed in response and left the machine to come greet him in the living room.

It was a nice, 1 bedroom apartment in the nice, downtown neighborhood of TriBeCa. She had a small but comfortable living room, along with a kitchen that Luke had stocked with groceries and would probably never be so full again, and her own nicely sized bedroom and bathroom. He knew she had refused her grandparents offer to pay for her to have a ridiculously large apartment on the Upper West Side, and instead appeased them by accepting their offer to help furnish this one.

As he met her in the middle of the room, Jess pulled Rory into a kiss and began to try to pull her towards her bedroom.

"Jess, my coffee!" she murmured against his lips as he kept walking them back.

"We haven't seen each other in a week, when was the last time you had coffee?" She closed her eyes in mock concentration.

"Umm, 53 minutes ago?" he just raised his eyebrows and could actually see her resolve weaken at his argument, until she threw herself back into his arms and let him lead the way.

* * *

><p>The next day was spent exploring Rory's neighborhood, finding everything she would need and then the area surrounding her office. By the time they sat down for dinner at a small Indian restaurant just a few blocks away from her building, they both felt like they'd walked through half of the city.<p>

All Jess wanted to do was have a relaxed dinner with Rory, then maybe watch a movie before he had to head back to Philly, but there was something he hadn't been able to tell her all day, and he had to get it out before he left.

He must have looked nervous because after their food came she caught his eye and tilted her head, looking confused.

"Hey, what's wrong? You said you were okay with Indian," he knew she was trying to joke around and lighten the mood, because he had dazed off for a moment and for him, that usually wasn't good.

"Indian's fine, like I said as long as it's in a restaurant, but, there's something I needed to tell you," he regretted his words instantly, she immediately looked afraid and sat back in her chair, eyes wide, chewing her lip nervously.

"Don't worry," he tries to be reassuring but is so nervous he thinks he may have made it worse, "I just, I have some options and I wanted to know what you thought." She just nods at him expectantly, waiting.

"You know we want to open another Truncheon right? Well, when you first decided to take this job, I spoke to Matt and Chris, that's why I had to go back so much that last week, we were talking about things," he wants her to say something, he doesn't feel like explaining any more. But for one the Gilmore mouth fails him and she stays silent, still looking nervous, but slightly eager too.

"I told them, that if they agreed to put the new location in New York, I would be the one to come and run it," he really should stop talking now, but it seems that the roles have reversed and she's sitting in silent surprise while he rambles on.

"But I'll only do it if its something that you want, I don't want to get in the way of this great job you're starting, and even if you do agree it's going to take months to even find a place and stock it, and I don't-" finally she stops him from speaking, something that normally wouldn't be needed.

"Jess, that's amazing," and her smile is the brightest thing he's ever seen, "I always think of you when I think of New York, and I was hoping coming to visit me from now on would lure you back. As long as you think this is the right thing for Truncheon too, I'm completely thrilled and will start scouting possible locations for it tomorrow!"

He laughs at her enthusiasm and leans across the table to kiss her softly, "it's the right thing for Truncheon, I'm ready to come back."

Jess swore that Rory's eyes actually sparkled for the rest of the night and he pulled her in a little closer to him than was necessary for the warm weather on their walk back to her apartment. Late that night as he kissed her goodbye in the doorway of her new home, he could feel her smile against his lips and pulled her tightly against him again.

He left with a promise to see her the following weekend, and she responded with one to have at least 5 places picked for him to look at. He rolled his eyes at the statement but couldn't hide the happiness in his voice after she said "I love you," as he walked away and responded with an earnest "love you, Ror."


End file.
